


In Any Universe...

by rebel_wren



Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: AU collection, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Duelling, Escape, F/M, Ficlet Collection, First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff, In-Laws, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rescue, Rescue Missions, Swordfighting, Swords, Training
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 04:35:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29520963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rebel_wren/pseuds/rebel_wren
Summary: Kanan Jarrus and Hera Syndulla have a love that binds them in any universe. Here are just a handful of those stories.aka, a collection of various Kanera AU ficlets (all technically within the Star Wars universe, so Hera still gets to be a Twi'lek).
Relationships: Kanan Jarrus/Hera Syndulla
Comments: 4
Kudos: 38





	1. Caf Shop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This AU sees Hera as a worker in a caf shop on Coruscant, and Kanan as another Coruscant civilian. They're linked together by Zeb, who is Hera's co-worker and Kanan's roommate.

“Hey,” Zeb said. “My roommate came by yesterday when you were working, did you see him?”

Hera finished screwing the lid on the cup of caf she made, then set it on the counter and nodded to the customer it belonged to- one of their regulars, an older Aqualish man who always tipped well. Before she watched him take it, she looked to Zeb. She and her tall Lasat friend both started working at the caf shop around the same time, because they’d both moved to Coruscant at the same time. They both worked almost all their shifts together, and had quickly become friends.

In fact, Zeb was one of her only friends. He’d come with her when she got her lekku tattooed at one of the tattoo parlors, and he’d even gifted her parts for the old broken astromech she always tinkered with, that she only just got running a month ago.

“I’m not sure,” Hera said. “What’s he look like?”

“Human,” he started describing. “Got a medium skin tone for humans, brown hair about to his shoulders, some on his chin too.”

“Oh,” Hera blinked. She remembered him now- he had ordered a bunch of sugar and cream in his caf, along with some sweet flavored syrups. She had wondered if his caf would even still taste like caf anymore after she made it. “Yeah, I saw him. That’s your infamous roommate?”

Zeb chuckled. “Yeah. His name’s Kanan. What did you think of him?”

“He seemed nice,” Hera said. “Why?”

“How about… looks-wise?”

Hera’s eyes narrowed.

“Why?” she repeated.

One of the machines behind the counters beeped, and Hera checked to see a new order come in. She looked across the shop to see a new customer waiting by one of the wall-mounted ordering datapads, a Nikto woman. Hera read the order quickly and got to work making it.

“Just answer the question,” Zeb said, hovering while she worked.

Hera pondered the question while she measured out some sugar for the caf. She remembered the man- Kanan, Zeb said. He had a nice, sharp jawline, a handsome nose, and pretty teal eyes that locked with hers when he thanked her for making the drink.

But she’d never hear the end of it if she told Zeb all that.

“He was alright,” Hera said simply, her green hands putting the lid on the Nikto woman’s drink. Zeb laughed as she brought it to the counter and called the order number.

“I’m guessing that’s Hera-speak for ‘very attractive.’”

Hera rolled her eyes.

“Your point?”

“Well,” Zeb said. “He’s single, and said he thought you were cute. So I thought I’d set you two up. Just a little date, see if you like each other.”

“Zeb-”

“You don’t have to go,” he said, putting his hands up defensively. “But I dunno… I could see you two working out. I think- well, I worry about you, kid. I know you don’t have a lot of friends here, I just want you to meet some people.”

Hera folded her arms, looking to see if any more customers were coming in.

Honestly, it wasn’t the worst of Zeb’s ideas. She _had_ thought his roommate was attractive, and for all of his faults she knew Zeb was a good judge of character. And it was sweet he cared about her that way- it was true, she threw herself into work to save up money, and hardly had time to make any friends or get to know anyone besides Zeb, who she worked with.

Besides, she hadn’t been on a date… well, ever. Never found the time. No sense in passing one up.

“Okay, you can give him my comm number,” Hera said, rolling her eyes as Zeb pumped his fist in celebration.

* * *

“You told her _what_?”

“Hey, I left out all your _poodoo_ about how beautiful her voice was when she called your order number,” Zeb said. “All I did was say you called her cute.”

Kanan shook his head. His face was flushed hot and he was sure it would be beet red if he was paler.

“Why would you do that?”

Kanan’s voice was an octave higher than normal, but he hoped Zeb wouldn’t mention it.

“Because, she seemed interested too. She said- well, she just said you were alright, but for her that means she really likes you.”

“Or it means she just thought I was alright,” Kanan pointed out. Zeb waved a hand dismissively.

“Nah, you don’t know Hera. She definitely likes you.”

“Really?” Kanan said sarcastically, shaking his head.

“If she didn’t,” Zeb said. “She wouldn’t have given me permission to give you her comm number.”

Kanan’s jaw dropped as Zeb passed him a folded up piece of flimsi. Zeb laughed at him.

“Yeah. She said she’d go on a date, just call her.”

Kanan unfolded the flimsi and read the number on it, mouth still open. He looked back up to Zeb, who had the most smug grin he’d ever seen on his face.

“You’re a good wingman,” Kanan said. Zeb chuckled.

“Hey, I just think you kids would be good together, don’t mind me. Now go call her.”

Kanan took the piece of flimsi to his room, and sat down at his personal comm to type in the number and call her. He keyed it in, and then waited while the empty blue hologram glowed in front of him, before the pretty Twi’lek woman appeared from shoulders up in front of him. She smiled.

“Hey,” she said. “Kanan, right? I was wondering when you’d call.”

Kanan’s face was warming up already, and he was glad the monochromatic hologram wouldn’t betray any color changes to his cheeks. Zeb made fun of him, but she really was gorgeous, with sparkling green eyes with an elegant almond shape, a defined, pointed face, just the cutest nose- and she had just the most beautiful voice he’d ever heard.

“Yeah,” he said. “And you’re Hera.”

She nodded, lekku swaying slightly.

“That’s me. We should probably figure out a time for this date, right?”

“Oh, yeah,” Kanan said. “I’m off work tomorrow, how about you?”

She frowned, and her brows and nose crinkled up in the most adorable way.

“I think… hmm… yeah, looks like I get off work a little early. We could go for dinner that evening? I, uh- I don’t eat out much, do you have something in mind?”

Kanan nodded. “Yeah. I know a place we can go.”  
“Great! Send me the coordinates, I can meet you there. How does six sound?”

Kanan grinned, already feeling giddy even if it was a few days away.

“Six sounds perfect.”

* * *

Hera smoothed out the dress one more time. It was new- well, new for her. When she looked up the restaurant that Kanan sent her the coordinates to, she very quickly realized that she didn’t have anything nice enough to wear. It was a pretty fancy-looking Naboo-themed restaurant. She dropped into a thrift store onto her way back from work, and thankfully found something that fit. It was nothing fancy, just a simple dark purple dress that went down to her ankles, but it looked nice. 

“What do you think, Chopper?” Hera asked, adjusting one of the straps.

Chopper grumbled, and she rolled her eyes. 

“I’ll be safe. He’s Zeb’s roommate, I’m sure he’s a nice guy. 

Chopper was an old droid that she’d fixed up herself, and he could be a bit over-protective of her. Hera was grateful for it, but he could be frustrating too.

She looked up to the chrono on her wall and chewed on her lip. She should leave in a few minutes. 

She wasn’t nervous. Not really. Sure, she’d never been on a date before, but… well, Kanan just made her feel comfortable even in their very limited interactions. She was actually excited to get to see him again. Besides, Zeb said they’d be sweet together, and she’d always trusted his judgement- he’d never steered her wrong before.

And she already knew he thought she was cute, even in her dingy cafe uniform. So that helped too.

“I’ll be back soon, Chop,” Hera said, patting the top of his dome. Chopper grumbled some more, but Hera cut him off when she closed the door of her apartment behind her. She left her building and started walking to the restaurant Kanan had chosen. Hera, as always, couldn’t help but bring her eyes up. She wasn’t on any of the farthest down levels of Coruscant, but she certainly wasn’t mingling around the top of the city planet either.

The restaurant was only a few blocks away, and soon Hera was standing outside, waiting. The sun was setting, which on the lower levels meant that everything was cast in shadow. A gentle breeze made her dress move and brush her legs. Hera looked around for Kanan, and spotted him walking towards her, wearing a nice, casual jacket and pants. She waved as he approached her.

“Hey,” he said. “You, uh… you look really nice.”

“Oh, thank you. So do you.”

“Sorry I didn’t like, bring you flowers or anything,” Kanan said nervously, running a hand over the back of his neck.

Hera blinked in surprise.

“No, that’s okay,” she said. “I didn’t bring you anything either.”

“Good, good. I, uh-” he said. “I made a reservation. We should be able to go sit now, you ready?”

“Sure,” Hera said.

She followed him into the restaurant, where the hostess seated them at a booth against a faux-window screen, showing rolling green fields broken up by rivers with mountains in the background. Hera could only assume that it was a scene from Naboo.

“This place is nice,” Hera said as she picked up a menu.

“Yeah,” Kanan chuckled. “Can’t go wrong with a Naboo theme.”

As Hera looked at the menu in front of her, she noticed most of the dishes were fish. She never had much fish before, but was willing to try something new. Though her wallet wasn’t. When the waiter came, she ordered one of the cheaper dishes of fish, and Kanan ordered one about the same price as hers- so at least they were on the same page for that.

“So,” Kanan said once the waiter took their menus and left. “Where are you from?”

“Ryloth,” Hera answered. Kanan raised his eyebrows.

“Ryloth? You’re a long way from home.”

Hera chuckled.

“Yeah,” she admitted. “I left home because I wanted to become a pilot- you know, travelling the galaxy. I moved here, got a job to save up to buy a ship, and… well, ships are expensive.”

Kanan laughed and nodded. “I get that. I actually work in one of the shipyards here.”

Hera perked up. “Really?”

Kanan nodded. “Yeah. Not as exciting as it sounds, mostly just doing repairs for the transports and carriers that come through.”

“That’s still interesting, though,” Hera offered. “I tried to get a job at the shipyards when I first moved here, but none were hiring.”

Kanan nodded. “I can let you know if a spot opens up at mine, if you want. I’m sure Zeb will miss making caf with you, though.”

Hera laughed. “Maybe. So… where are you from?”

Kanan shrugged. “Grew up around here. I, uh… well, I don’t know what planet I was born on, but I was taken to an orphanage here when I was a kid.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Hera said.

“Don’t worry about it,” Kanan said with a reassuring smile.

The waiter came back with a basket of bread and two glasses of water.

“Your entrees will be ready soon,” he said, before carrying his tray away.

“I have a question,” Kanan said.

“Shoot,” Hera said, drinking from her glass.

“The marks, uh, there,” he said, motioning to her lekku. “Are they natural?”

Hera chuckled, reaching up to brush her fingers against the end of her lekku.

“No,” she said. “They’re tattoos. I got them when I first moved here, because… I don’t know, I liked having the independence. Zeb came with me, actually, to get them done.

“They’re really pretty,” Kanan said.

Hera blushed, reaching for a piece of bread from the basket.

“Thank you.”

The waiter brought their dishes of fish, which Hera thanked him for. As they started to eat, the conversation slowed way down, but Hera still felt herself enjoying just being in Kanan’s company.

She hated it when Zeb was right.

* * *

Hera gave Kanan permission to walk her home, much to Kanan’s delight. Cool breezes blew past them as Kanan went with her to her apartment, which wasn’t far from the restaurant. Kanan was happy that he got to keep talking to her for the walk home- he’d really had a great time at the restaurant, and just wanted more time with her. There would definitely be a second date, if she would have him.

“Hey,” Kanan said. “You know what’s funny? This is on the way to me and Zeb’s place.”

“Really?”

Kanan nodded.

“Wow,” Hera said. “I guess I’ve never been to Zeb’s apartment.”

“You’ll have to come by sometime.”

Hera looked at him, a sheepish smile on her face.

“Yeah, I think I will. This, uh- this is it, right here.”

She stopped in front of a fairly run-down apartment building. Kanan stopped with her. He wasn’t sure if she’d invite him up or not- it seemed to him that she had fun, but she also didn’t seem like she was ready for that yet.

“I had a really nice time, Kanan,” she said. “We’ll have to do this again.”

Kanan lit up.

“Yeah, definitely,” he said. “I had a nice time too. I’ll… see you another time then?”

“Hopefully soon,” Kanan said with a smile.

Hera smiled back, and then came a little closer to press a kiss to Kanan’s cheek. His entire face felt like it lit on fire, starting from where she’d touched him. He was burning up.

“Uh… uh, I- uh.”

 _You’re an idiot, Kanan_ , he thought to himself. 

“Bye, Kanan!” Hera said, waving at him before going into her apartment building.

Kanan managed to wave back, while still internally cursing himself with the swears of every language he knew. He started his own trek back to his apartment, still thinking about Hera Syndulla.

It had only been one date, but he just had this feeling that things were going to go far for them. Because somehow, Zeb was always right.


	2. The Prince and the Peasant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This AU sees Kanan as an escaped Prince, and Hera as the shopkeeper who owns the shop he tries to take shelter in.

Hera didn’t care for the royalty on her planet. Never did, probably never would. She didn’t hate them like people tended to think she meant when she said that, she just… didn’t care. Not even a little. It wasn’t her life to worry about, especially since the royalty here had no real power over the planetary senate like they did some places. So Hera just worked in her mechanic shop, fixing old droids and ignoring the gossip that people spread about the lives of royalty.

Because again. She didn’t care.

It’s that exact lack of care that led to her not recognizing the man that showed up at her shop one evening. He didn’t have anything with him, just seemed to be taking shelter from the freezing rain. He was human, seemed to be about her own age, but he kept his face hidden underneath the hood of the ratty cloak he wore. He wore uncharacteristically worn clothing (not that Hera knew it was out of character for him), and hid his face in a big hood.

Hera rolled her eyes when she stepped in. He didn’t have a droid or anything with him to fix, and she didn’t have any pickups scheduled today, so he was clearly just in the store to do nothing. She hated loiterers- though she supposed today there wasn’t any business for him to drive away, not right before she closed up for the night.

“Can I help you?” Hera asked, in the sweetest customer-service voice she could muster despite her annoyance.

The man looked up at her in alarm, as if he hadn’t realized she was there, before quickly trying to hide his face again. Hera caught a glimpse of what he looked like- tanned skin, teal eyes and some brown hair underneath his hood.

“N- no,” he said, shivering. “Just trying to get warm.”

Hera softened a little bit at hearing how cold he sounded. Her father had always chided her that she cared about strangers to a fault, but she didn’t care. She just wanted to help people. She went from behind her counter to slowly approach him.

“Are you alright?”

He nodded, trying to hide his face from her. Hera frowned.

“So… what’s your name?”

The man hesitated, more than she expected.

“Kanan Jarrus,” he said.

“Kanan,” she said. “I’m Hera. You don’t have to stand by the door, come in and get warm.”

She guided him towards some seats she had set up against one of the walls.

“Where are you from, Kanan?”

“Um… not close to here,” he said.

“Are you a traveller?”

“...yes.”

Hera nodded. “Where’s your ship?”

Kanan paused again, and Hera wished she could see his face so that she could gage his reaction.

“Crashed,” he said.

“So you're stranded,” Hera said sympathetically. “Can I get you anything to eat? My apartment is upstairs, I’ve got plenty of food.”

“No,” Kanan said. His stomach rumbled, and Hera gave him a sad smile.

“Let me go get you something, I’ll be right back. Don’t… don’t try anything in the shop, I’ve got camdroids in the walls.”

That was a lie. But Kanan- if that was even his name- was lying to her too. She could tell. All she had to do was figure out why.

* * *

Prince Caleb Dume never would have imagined himself in such a state. Wrapped up in an old cloak wearing clothes probably even older, shivering and wet in what seemed to be a droid mechanic shop. The woman who ran it was a pretty green Twi’lek woman, Hera, who Kanan kind of liked already- she was kind and even offered him food.

She hadn’t recognized him yet, which was good. Caleb couldn’t be recognized, at least not before he was off-world. Then he’d be out from under the thumb of the rest of the royals forever- he’d be free.

Of course first, he had to figure out how exactly he’d get off world. He wasn’t exactly experienced with spaceports. Or anything, really, besides being dressed up and paraded around in public, and yelled at and neglected in private.

He had to get out.

Hera came back with a bowl of something with a smell that Caleb sort of recognized, some type of soup. She sat down across from him and passed him the bowl. It was small and wooden, far from the expensive dinnerware that he was used to. Nevertheless, he was hungry, thanking her and taking a sip from the bowl.

Once he started, he couldn’t stop. Caleb slurped away at the soup almost desperately- he hadn’t realized how hungry he was. 

Hera chuckled once he reached the bottom of the bowl.

“So you _were_ hungry.”

Caleb lowered the bowl and gave a sheepish smile, before realizing with a panic that his hood had slipped back. He dropped the bowl onto his lap and quickly pulled the hood back up. Hera raised her eyebrows.

“I already saw your face, if that’s what you’re trying to hide,” she said. “A little too late.”

Caleb sighed in defeat, and looked at her. His plan was ending before it even started. They were right- maybe he just wasn’t cut out for any kind of real life.

“So you recognize me, then.”

Hera frowned. “Recognize you? Why would I recognize you? Have you been here before?”

Caleb frowned too. “You- you don’t?”

“No?”

“Right, you don’t,” Caleb said quickly, beginning to realize with glee that he seemed to have found probably the only person on this planet that didn’t know who he was by looking at him. “Sorry, I- I don’t know, I just assume sometimes.”

Hera cracked a smile. “Why, are you famous or something? Is Kanan Jarrus a singer I don’t know about?”

Caleb laughed. “No, no- I- I don’t know. Thank you for this, by the way.”

He raised the empty bowl, and Hera gently took it from him, her fingers brushing his. Kanan’s face warmed up as she did.

_Why?_

“Well, traveller,” Hera said. “If you’re planning on getting a ship out from the spaceport, you won’t be doing that tonight, every ship is going to be grounded because of the storm.”

Caleb sighed in defeat.

“Really?”

Hera nodded.

“You can stay here tonight, if you’d like,” she offered. “I can bring down a sleep-mat and some blankets for you.”

Caleb hesitated, trying to figure out how much he trusted Hera. She had been nothing but extremely kind to him, and seemed genuinely confused when he worried she might have recognized him. In fact… Hera had been kinder to him than he was sure anyone ever had in his whole life. He felt safe. He could sleep here.

“That would be nice,” he said. Hera smiled.

“I’ll be right back down, alright?”

* * *

Hera hauled the sleep-mat down the stairs, along with a pile of blankets and a pillow. It wasn’t much, but all she had. She didn’t exactly have very many guests.

She still didn’t know what Kanan was hiding from her. She supposed she didn’t actually have to know- she usually had a good enough sense of character, and she could tell that whatever secret he had, it definitely wasn’t that he was some kind of murderer. He was actually nice, and she already liked that about him.

What she didn’t know when she first brought down the sleep-mat that night was that the storm would be one of the planet’s long ones, some of them lasting for weeks. When she first realized this, she was a little annoyed- she had not signed up to keep a visitor around this long. But for whatever reason… well, she just couldn’t bring herself to kick him out. He was so nice, and she really felt herself beginning to trust him.

And it wasn’t like he wasn’t grateful for her hospitality. Over the next few days, he actually offered her help in the shop, which she declined at first, but as more and more people started coming to her with water-logged droids to fix thanks to the storm, Hera gladly took his help. He refused to work the front of the shop or talk to customers for some reason, but he did a lot of the busy work that Hera always got annoyed with, like making the customer logs and handling book-keeping when it came to credits.

The first time he did it for her, Hera let him upstairs into the office she kept in her apartment for it. That night, when he started to go downstairs into the shop to get on the sleep-mat, Hera offered him the more comfortable couch instead, which he accepted. They kept up that routine for a few days, and after the shop’s closing, Kanan would even come downstairs to sit and talk with her while she worked on the droids, even letting her teach him some basic droid maintenance.

“Where do you think you’ll go?” Hera asked one night. “Once the rain stops.”

Kanan shrugged. “I don’t know.”

She chuckled as she turned her wrench on the droid she was working on. This wasn’t for a customer, but her personal project, an old C1 astromech that she swore she’d get working to help her in the shop some day.

“You’re a traveller that doesn’t know where he’s travelling to?”

“Well,” Kanan said with a chuckle of his own. “Do you have any suggestions?”

Hera paused.

“No,” she admitted. “I’ve never left the planet, actually, so I don’t know where you could go. I think it’s cool, though, that you get to just travel around from place to place. I’ve always dreamed of doing that.”

“You have?”

She nodded.

“Yeah. I took some flying lessons when I was a teenager, and I was really good at it. But… well, affording a ship isn’t exactly easy. I mean, don’t get me wrong, life is fine here,” she said, gesturing around the shop. “But I’ve always wondered, just… what it would be like, you know? To fly around, seeing the galaxy, exploring. Maybe even helping people out on different planets.”

“Why don’t you do it?” Kanan asked inquisitively.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, just leave. That’s what I did-” Kanan cut himself off quickly, and then continued. “When I was a little younger. You know, everyone’s gotta start somewhere. Why not?”

Now that was a good question. Why hadn’t Hera done it? With her savings, and if she sold the shop- and she’d had buyers offer before- she’d have enough to pick a nice ship. A used one, probably, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t fix it up and fly it anyway. 

“I don’t know,” Hera admitted. “Maybe I’m afraid I'll fail somehow. Or maybe… maybe I just need to take the chance someday.”

She’d never talked to anyone about all this before. She didn’t have very many close friends- plenty of people to talk to, but no one to really _talk_ to. But Kanan… it was really easy to open up to him. He was friendly, and genuine, even if she couldn’t shake the feeling that he had something to hide. She liked him a lot, regardless of the fact that she hadn’t known him that long.

“Thanks for talking to me, Kanan,” Hera said. “It’s been really nice having you around- and not just because you’re doing work for me.”

Kanan smiled at her and laughed quietly, and Hera laughed with him. She didn’t say it, but she hoped he’d understood- she would miss him when he left.

It wasn’t until after over a full week that the storm finally let up one night. The quiet as the rain stopped pounding on the roof was welcomed by Hera as she sat with Kanan on the couch to talk, as the sound became a bit bothersome after a while. Normally, Hera was excited by the end of a storm, as it meant the spaceports would re-open and she’d get more customers, but this time that thought brought some sadness.

* * *

Caleb looked up at the ceiling as the pounding sound of the rain on Hera’s apartment roof ceased, and when his gaze lowered again he found that Hera had done the same thing. Their eyes met, and they just stared at each other for a while.

“Well…” Hera said, a hint of sadness permeating her voice. “The spaceports will open up tomorrow. You’ll be able to leave, then.”

“Yeah,” Caleb said with a sigh.

Why was he disappointed? This was what he wanted, right? The past weeks of being stuck thanks to the storm had made him nervous, and it was hard to sleep when he feared he would be found by the royal guards at any moment, even if he’d enjoyed spending time with Hera and throwing himself into methodical work to help her. Not only that, but what would happen to Hera? If she was punished for harboring him when he was trying to escape, it would be all his fault. She hadn’t known anything, and yet he’d roped her into his scheme.

“Well,” Hera said. “Hopefully someday your travels will find their way back here, and I’ll get to see you again.”

“Hopefully,” Caleb said, feeling a mix of sadness, guilt and bitterness twisting through him.

When he looked at Hera, he truly felt a way that he never had before. She was kind to him, helped him even though she didn’t have to, she’d open up to him, Well, not to him. To Kanan. He’d tricked her, and he felt downright awful about it.

He figured that he’d probably be long gone by the time that the royal guards finally got out to this backwater town on the edge of a small spaceport, and maybe then Hera would see his face on a poster somewhere and realize who Kanan Jarrus really was. He wondered how she’d react, though he supposed he’d never know.

“Kanan,” Hera said quietly. “I- I don’t know. I know you probably won’t come back, so… do you mind-?”

She didn’t finish her sentence, but she was leaning closer to him, and Caleb realized what she meant with heat flushing to his face.

“Yes,” he said, just as quietly.

Hera kissed him, and Caleb closed his eyes. He felt like he was on fire, in the best way possible. His hand lifted to gently cup her cheek, and one of her hands reached back to stroke his brown hair. When she pulled away from him, her cheeks were blushing a slightly darker shade of green and she wore a shy smile on her face.

“Good night, Kanan,” she said, standing up from the couch. “Hopefully I’ll get to see you in the morning before you go.”

Kanan smiled at her, but he could hardly bring himself to speak.

“Yeah- g’night.”

She smiled at him as she started to head to her bedroom. “You’re always welcome here, if you do come back.”

Her bedroom door shut, and Caleb flopped down on the couch, his face still warm.

He still had to leave the planet, but that didn’t mean that he still wanted to.

* * *

Hera was awake early the next morning, and got to work prepping the shop before she opened it. The day after a long storm was always her busiest She had carefully walked quietly through the living room as she came downstairs to not wake Kanan up on the couch. Her face warmed a little bit as she walked by him, thinking about their kiss the previous night.

Maybe it was silly of her, to hope that he’d decide to stay after all because of her. She couldn’t really blame him, she didn’t exactly love staying on this planet either. And if she was a traveller, well she definitely wouldn’t throw it all away for someone else.

She still thought about what he’d said a little while ago, about how she could just up and leave if that’s what she really wanted. She could. And maybe she would.

Her chime rang as the door to the shop was pushed open, and Hera frowned. She left her counter and started walking to the entrance.

“Excuse me, I’m not open yet,” she said. “If you come back in an hour-”

She froze and cut herself off as a big, heavily armed guard stood in the entrance of her shop. Her mouth went dry, and she became acutely aware that her blaster pistol was still in its safe upstairs.

“Um… can I help you?” Hera asked, doing her best to not sound intimidated.

“I’m looking for someone,” the guard said. “Prince Caleb Dume. Have you seen him?”

Before Hera could say that she had certainly not seen any type of royalty in this town, the guard pulled out a pocket holoprojector and flicked it on. The floating blue image of a man with long hair appeared, and Hera felt her face grow hot.

_It couldn’t be…_

“No,” Hera said, shaking her head. “No, I haven’t. Why- why are you looking for him?”

“That’s none of your business, peasant,” the guard dismissed her curtly, turning the holoprojector off and shoving it back into his pocket. “Thanks for the help, I guess.”

Hera watched, her mouth slightly agape as he turned around and left, the chime ringing again. Hera’s hand curled up into a fist as the door closed, and she marched back through the shop, up the stairs into her apartment. Kanan- or Caleb- was already awake, sitting on the couch. He smiled at her when he first saw her, but that quickly fell when he took in her body language.

“Caleb Dume.”

He paused for a moment, just looking at her, and then sighed.

“How’d you find out?”

“Some guard came by looking for you,” she said. His eyes widened.

“The guards are here?”

She nodded.

“Why- just, why?”

“Hera-”

“Explain.”

Caleb sighed.

“I… listen, I was miserable in the palace. I know you don’t keep up with the royals, but- I mean, they put out this image that we’re a perfect, happy family, but we’re not. Not at all. I had to get out, and I was going to escape, but… well, the storm.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t know if I could trust you not to turn me in at first,” Caleb admitted. “And then I didn’t want you to be hurt when I told you.”

He stood up and slowly approached her.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “You opened up to me, and helped me, and I wasn’t honest with you.”

Hera looked into his eyes, and now she could see nothing but genuineness in them. While she had that initial feeling before that she was hiding something, now she knew what that was. With that gone, she just saw him in front of her. And she realized that it hadn’t all been a lie. Sure, Kanan Jarrus wasn’t his name, and sure, he wasn’t actually a traveller. But the person that she spent time with, that was real.

Hera stepped forward, wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

“Thank you,” she said.

And she truly, truly meant it.

* * *

Caleb was growing more thankful for Hera by the minute, and he hadn’t known that he could become more grateful. She’d hatched a plan to help him covertly get to the spaceport, buy a ticket and leave the planet safely. She said she was happy to help him, but also seemed really… sad about it. Caleb felt bad for putting her in this position, but she didn’t complain and even insisted on helping him out. Though neither of them seemed to mind the extra time to spend together.

They’d put off his departure for a few days. Caleb would stay hidden in the apartment, and hopefully the guards would move on from this town and go to the next before he left in the spaceport. It would be hard, especially now that people knew to look for him, but Hera seemed fairly confident in their escape plan. Which is why Caleb was surprised when she came to him one day, saying something he hadn’t expected.

“This isn’t going to work,” Hera said.

“What?”

“People will see you. One slip of your cloak in the spaceport, and it’s over for both of us. And if people notice you during the flight, you have nowhere to run.”

“Well… what do you want to do, then? It’s not safe for either of us if I stay here forever.”

“I know,” she said. “We’ll both leave. I contacted a buyer for the shop and the apartment, and once it sells I can buy an old VCX in the shipyard I’ve been looking at for years. I’ll finish fixing the C1 up, so he can help us, and we’ll be out of here.”

Caleb was speechless. He opened his mouth, trying to find words, but they eluded him for a few moments.

“Hera, I… you don’t have to do this.”

She took his hands in hers. “I want to. We can really be travellers, exploring, all of that. I’ve been stuck on this rock for too long, I want out. But I was too afraid, and I just needed a reason to make a jump. And… now I have a reason.”

She smiled at him. The sacrifice she was making- Caleb almost couldn’t comprehend it.

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life,” Hera said.

Caleb looked into her eyes, and saw not just the compassionate woman that helped him even when she didn’t have to, but a future. A future where he got to be happy and free. A future where he got to be with the most amazing woman he ever met.

He smiled back at her.

“Then let’s go.”


	3. Royalty and a Rogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This AU sees Hera as a princess, and Kanan as the scoundrel that she's fallen in love with.

Princess Hera pushed her food around her plate. She wasn’t that hungry, so she’d eaten enough of dinner. She was just waiting for her parents to give her permission to dismiss herself- she had plans, not that they knew of them. 

However, her father, King Cham, was locked deep in conversation with one of his advisors, though her mother, Queen Tislera, didn’t look engaged at all.

“Mom,” Hera whispered. “Can I go?”

“Not yet,” her mother chided.

Hera groaned and leaned back in her chair.

Soon, her father finished his conversation with the advisor, waving him away from the dinner table so it was the King, Queen, and their daughter, as well as the handful of guards by the doorways.

“Father,” Hera requested. “May I retire to my quarters?”

“Just enjoy dinner with your family,” Cham said. “A few minutes more, Hera. I hardly get to see you.”

Hera nodded, though she was growing a little more anxious about possibly missing her plans, and had taken to nervously pulling at the ribbons wound around her lekku.

“I had another suitor asking about you yesterday, little one,” Cham said. Hera raised her eyebrows.

“You did?”

“Mmhmm. Very nice-looking young man from the Secura clan. He’s an artist, you know. You might like someone like him.”

“No, father,” Hera said. “I mean- thank you, but I’m not interested.”

“Not even to meet him? You never know,” Tislera said. “You know, that’s how I met your father. He was just one of the suitors that came to the palace, and I liked him… a little too much. And look! Now we’re in love, after all these years.”

Her parents smiled at each other, and Hera swallowed hard.

“No, I know, mom. I’m just… not interested.”

“Hera,” Tislera said gently. “If… if you’d like, we could look for female suitors should you prefer.”

“No, mom, it’s not that,” she said. “Just… I’m not looking for that right now.”

“Alright,” Tislera said. “You don’t have to get married if you don’t want to, but you should let us know when you’re ready.”

“Uh huh. Could I go now?”

Cham sighed, and nodded.

“Alright. Good night, Hera.”

She smiled and practically bolted up from her seat.

“Good night!”

Hera raced to her room, and when she got there she shut the door behind her. She pulled back her curtains, looking across the dry landscapes of Ryloth. But her planet’s beauty was not what she was looking for. She pushed the window open a little bit, and looked to the bottom of the tower she lived on top of, into a bush below. She picked up a crystal off of her windowsill, and held it out so that it caught the setting sunlight. She was late, so it wasn’t as easy as usual, but she managed to shine a purple reflection onto the ground below, in front of the bush. After a moment, a scruffy human man’s head popped up out of the bush. Hera smiled, and reached into a box she kept under her bed for a rope. She lowered it down, and watched him climb up the wall. He pushed himself through her window, and stepped onto the floor, stretching his back. Hera coiled the rope and put it back in the box, and looked up at Kanan Jarrus.

The scoundrel had first caught her eye on a vacation she took to her parents’ secret cabin. She went alone for once, and took a walk one day to get some fresh air, where she ran into Kanan for the first time- he was exploring, looking for a rumored secret stash of riches. Well, Hera told him that the riches were a myth, but they ended up talking for a very long time. They met up at the same time, the same place to talk every day for the rest of Hera’s trip, and on the last day, she invited him to spend the night in the cabin with her. They soon formed their secret relationship, and Kanan would visit her in the palace once a week at the same time, and they created their little system. Hera was usually much, much better at staying consistent with it.

“You’re late, princess,” Kanan said with a sideways grin.

“I know,” she said. “My parents kept me at the dinner table.”

“Hey, I’m not complaining,” he said. He leaned down to kiss her, and Hera threw her arms over his shoulders, kissing him back. He wrapped his arms around her waist and even when they broke apart the kiss, he still didn’t let go.

“I missed you,” Hera breathed.

“I missed you too.”

They stepped back from each other, and both sat down on Hera’s bed. She took to one of her favorite activities- combing her fingers through Kanan’s long hair, playing with it. Sometimes she tried to braid it, but she wasn’t especially good at that. 

“I wish you could come around more,” she said.

“Hey, I’m all for telling your parents if that’s what you want to do,” Kanan said. Hera rolled her eyes- sometimes, he was a little bit too relaxed for her liking. 

“I just don’t know how they’d react,” she said. “I think I finally got them to give up on looking for suitors for me. For now, at least.”

“What, they’re trying to marry you off for power?”

“No,” Hera protested. “They’re not that kind of people. They just… they met because my dad was a suitor for my mom, so I think they think it’s the perfect way to meet. I’m not sure if they’d be… weird about me meeting someone in a different way. And no offense, but I’m not sure how they’d feel about me marrying someone, uh…”

“Poor?” Kanan chuckled. “A scoundrel like me?”

“You know I don’t care about that.”

“Yeah, but it sounds like your old man might.”

“I don’t know if that matters as much as you not doing things the old-fashioned way,” Hera said.

Kanan flopped down onto the bed, pulling his hair free of her fingers, and Hera mirrored him. They both just laid on the bed, staring up at Hera’s ceiling. 

“You… you do want to marry me, right?” Kanan asked.

Hera reached over to take his hand in hers.

“Yeah, I do,” she said. “But again, my parents…”

“Well,” Kanan said. “What if I was a suitor?”

“What?”

“What if I got dressed up all nice like one of those princes, and came to the palace and said I was a suitor?”

“You’d lie to my parents?”  
“Not lie,” Kanan said, turning his head to look at her. “Just… not tell them we’ve been seeing each other. I wouldn’t tell a real lie, like that I’m a prince or whatever. Just that I’m a man who wants the princess’s hand in marriage.”

“What if they turn you away?”

“Would they do that if you let me in?”

Hera paused to think, and her lips curled into a smile.

“No, I don’t think they would.”

* * *

Kanan preened himself. He looked entirely different than he usually did, and admittedly he was a little worried that Hera wouldn’t like it. She was always fascinated by the way his long hair would move around, but now it was tied up in a tight bun. He also wasn’t wearing his typical worn clothes or leather armor, but a formal suit, wearing dark grays rather than his usual greens. He felt alien looking at his own appearance.

But this was definitely what he wanted to do. For Hera. He was truly in love with her, and he was sure she felt the same about him. And if dressing up as someone he really wasn’t was what it took to get to marry her, then he’d do that every day if he had to.

A droid took his information and rolled into the palace, instructing him to wait to be greeted. Soon the King of the Syndulla Clan-controlled region of Ryloth approached, flanked by armed guards. Kanan did his best to not betray his nerves to him.

“This is Kanan Jarrus?”

Kanan gave a small courtesy bow, trying not to totally clam up over meeting his secret girlfriend’s father.

 _Just stick to simple answers_ , Kanan reminded himself.

“Yes sir.”

“And you’re here as a suitor for my daughter?”

“Yes sir.”

“But you’re not… a prince?”

Kanan swallowed hard.

“Yes sir.”

King Cham nodded, eyeing him suspiciously.

“I have to say, I have yet to have a suitor come with an offer that wasn’t a prince. And very few suitors at all come in-person anymore- even less without some kind of party accompanying them.”

“Well, sir,” Kanan said, choosing his words carefully. “I wanted to show that I was serious.”

King Cham seemed to wear a small smile.  
“Well, I can’t say that I can promise she’ll meet you, she’s been pretty resistant to suitors,” Cham said, and Kanan tried not to smirk. “But a young man as bold as yourself deserves to at least come inside. Come on in, Kanan Jarrus.”

Kanan internally rejoiced as he followed King Cham inside. He thought he was just sweating and hot because of the humid heat of Ryloth, but that warmth didn’t change at all once he was inside.

_Get yourself under control._

Soon, Kanan was in what he assumed was the dining room of the palace, and a pretty green-skinned Twi’lek woman that looked remarkably like what he imagined an older Hera would look like smiled at him.

“You must be the newest suitor,” she said. “Welcome. I’m sure my husband told you that she hasn’t been willing to meet suitors before, but since you’re already here, I’ll go ask her if she’d like to make an exception.”

Kanan nodded.

“Thank you. Uh- er, your highness.”

She chuckled, and left, presumably towards Hera’s room. Kanan had never actually been in any part of the palace besides her room, so he didn’t really know the layout at all.

“Sit down, Kanan,” King Cham said. Kanan followed his orders, taking a seat at the dinner table.

“So,” he continued. “What interests you in our daughter?”

Kanan hesitated to answer, probably a little too long.

“Well,” he started nervously. “I… I mean, I think she’s very beautiful. And I’ve heard that she’s smart, and kind, and… uh…”

Kanan didn’t know how else to continue without revealing their secret. Luckily, King Cham just chuckled.

“It’s alright. You seem like a nice young man, Kanan Jarrus, even if you aren’t one of our typical suitors. However, I’m afraid it’s unlikely she’ll be coming. Maybe if you’re still interested in a few years, if she becomes more open-”

“Hello,” Hera’s voice said. She and her mother had returned, her mother sharing an extremely surprised look with her husband. Hera smiled at Kanan, and Kanan smiled at her too.

“You must be Kanan,” Hera said. Her voice was calm and stable, though by looking into her eyes he could tell she was equally as nervous as he was.

“Yes,” Kanan said. “It’s… it’s really nice to meet you.”

“Likewise. Will dinner be out soon?”

She sat across from him, but as she asked her question she looked to her father, who looked stunned.

“Um… yes, yes, soon.”

Dinner went surprisingly smoothly. Now that Hera was here, Kanan found it a little easier to go along with the story that he was just a lowly man who was trying to court a princess. Hell, technically that wasn’t too far from the truth. 

Hera, though, seemed to be going the opposite way. As dinner continued, Hera seemed to be getting more and more tense. She wasn’t eating very much, her grip on her utensils was growing tighter until her knuckles were a pale yellow-y white, and her responses to questions became even shorter.

“So Kanan,” Queen Tislera said. “It’s awful bold for an everyday man to show up on a palace doorstep. I have to say, I admire your courage.”

“I agree,” King Cham said. “And should Hera decide to court you, she has our full support.”

Kanan grew warm, glowing with pride. He’d done it. He’d gained their approval. Before he could thank them, Hera slammed her fork down, startling everyone. Kanan raised an eyebrow, and she met his eyes before looking at her parents.

“I can’t do this.”

Kanan frowned, and Queen Tislera gave Hera a stern look.

“Compose yourself,” her mother chided. Hera shook her head.

“This is a lie, mom. We’re lying to you.”

“Hera,” Kanan said through gritted teeth.

He couldn’t believe she was doing this, just when things were going so well.

The King and Queen looked between the two of them, now even more confused than when Hera had come to meet her first suitor.

“Kanan and I have been seeing each other,” Hera said, sparing a nervous glance to him. “For a while now. And… I thought that maybe you’d be happier if he pretended to be a suitor. But I can’t lie. Not about this.”

King Cham and Queen Tislera were awfully quiet for a moment, just staring, mouths agape at their daughter. Kanan steeled himself, waiting for them to order one of the guards to grab him and drag him out of the palace.

But they surprised him.

“How did you meet?” Queen Tislera asked.

“At the cabin,” Hera said. “When I went alone that time. I was taking a walk, and I ran into him.”

“Is this why you’ve been dodging suitors?” King Cham asked.

Hera nodded.

“I…” she looked to Kanan as her voice faltered, but then she smiled before looking back to her parents. “I love him. I really do. And I’d like him to move into the palace with us. Please.”

Kanan could hardly get over the warm giddiness of Hera proclaiming her love for him before he was scared by the intense gazes of a Twi’lek King and Queen.

“Do you accept?” Queen Tislera asked. 

Kanan nodded, suddenly finding it hard to form words. He looked across the table to Hera, who was wearing a giant smile on her face.

“You understand what this commitment means to us?” King Cham asked. “By joining us here, you’re stating intent to marry our daughter.”

Hera looked across the table nervously to Kanan. He slowly nodded again.

“Very well,” King Cham said. “You both have my blessing.”

Kanan could have jumped up and down with glee like a child, but instead he opted to stand up and move around the table to Hera. She had the same idea, and they met just to collide together in a hug, laughing quietly with each other.

“You won’t be a scoundrel much longer,” Hera whispered in his ear. “Prince Kanan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear this fic won't just be a bunch of royalty AUs. I mean, there's two more royalty AUs coming, but after them there will be a little more variety.


	4. Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This AU sees Kanan as a kidnapped prince, and bold pilot Hera Syndulla is sent to save him.

Hera Syndulla stood at attention in the throne room of the palace. Her feats as a pilot had, apparently, not gone unnoticed by the governing royalty of the planet. Why they’d called upon her, though, Hera had yet to find out.

Flanked by brown, leather armor-clad guards, the Queen approached her- a kind woman with tanned skin, long brown hair and bright teal eyes. The holos of the Queen always showed her smiling, like the benevolent ruler she’d proved herself to be in her reign. However, the flesh and blood woman in front her looked sad, with worry creasing her forehead.

“I’m glad you answered the call,” the Queen said. “Hera Syndulla, I’d like to hire your services- any price you name.”

Hera could hear desperation in her voice- not the unwavering, soft strength in her speeches. Hera swallowed hard, as though she didn’t know the specifics of the situation it was hard to find herself growing emotional with the Queen.

“What do you need of me, Your Highness?”

She kept her voice as steady as she could. The Queen sighed.

“My son has been taken from me. We know where- a group of pirates that have built a stronghold on the first moon.”

Hera raised an eyebrow.

“So why do you need me?”

“They’ve set up a web of mines around the moon. We’ve lost nearly every pilot that has gone and tried to rescue him, and no one has made it to the base. I’ve heard nothing but incredible things about your skills as a pilot, Hera Syndulla. I fear you might be my last hope.”

“You want me to go rescue him?”

The Queen nodded.

“Name your price.”

Hera thought for a while. She’d taken payment for missions before, but most of them had been just when she hauled cargo for someone, or ferried passengers around. She’d never done a rescue mission before, and to request payment for it? It just seemed… wrong. Especially because of how desperate the woman in front of her appeared. Hera had learned to fly because she wanted to help people. This could be her chance.

“No payment needed, Your Highness,” Hera said firmly. “I’ll save your son.”

* * *

Prince Kanan shivered. He was soaking wet, curled up on the floor of a small cell. His clothes, once well-fitted and expensive, were now torn and dirty. There was a small viewport on one wall, giving Kanan a view of what he recognized from his studies to be the landscape of the first moon of his planet. While technically, it could be any icy planet or moon out there, the travel time of his capture and the lack of a hyperspace jump indicated to him that they hadn’t gone far enough for him to be anywhere else.

He was sure the pirates were badgering his poor mother for some kind of ransom- why else capture a prince? He could only imagine the pain this was bringing her, and he felt horrible about it. This was all his fault anyway, his mother warned him not to go for a swim in the lake unattended, but he had gone anyway. The worst part was that he knew she wouldn’t be mad at him, or scold him when- if- he was returned home. She’d only be grateful, when she should be mad, and that hurt his heart.

Some laughter from the despicable pirates jolted him from his thoughts, and he scowled before leaning his head against the wall, bringing his knees tighter to his chest and longing for warmth.

* * *

Hera had donned her flight-suit and jacket and was flying out through space towards the moon. As she grew closer to it, her scanner started to warm her of the mines up ahead, more and more blips on her scanner with each second she got closer to the orbital range of the moon. She let out a low whistle.

There were a lot of them. And the web was much tighter than she’d even imagined. No way the Queen’s guard starfighters could fit through it, let alone her larger freighter.

But Hera wasn’t worried about that. If it was impossible to get through, the pirates wouldn’t have set it up- they had to get in and out themselves, after all. Hera slowed her ship dramatically when she was close to the minefield, until the thrusters had stopped and she was just barely drifting through space.

“Chopper,” she said to the orange C-1 series astromech droid that helped her around the ship. “Can you scan the closest mine to us? I want to see how it works.”

Chopper let out a warble and plugged into the ship, initiating a scan of one of the mines. With the  _ Ghost _ ’s scanner casting a light on it, Hera could get a better view. It was an odd-looking mangle of parts that looked more like the typical scrap you find in the orbit of planets and moons. It was only made notable by the blinking red light atop it. After a few moments, one of the screens on the ship’s console beeped, and Hera looked at it for the information. She arched her brows as she read, considering what she was learning. 

The mine was not, actually, a mine at all in the technical sense. Rather, it was a droid made of scrap with a highly volatile core.

But how was it rigged to explode? The core was of course volatile, but according to the readings not volatile enough that hitting it any velocity slower than near-lightspeed would actually cause an explosion.

“Can you get me a wireless download of the droid’s processor modules stats?”

Chopper made a surprised grumble, and Hera rolled her eyes.

“I just want to see something,” she said. “Can you do it?”

With some more complaining, Chopper managed to get her the stats on the droids processor. Hera nodded slowly as she looked at the screen.

“Hmm. Can’t say they aren’t clever.”

The droid wasn’t rigged with any combat modules- which made sense, considering they were hard to come by and expensive. Instead, the droid had a vastly over-enthusiastic fear module that linked to the volatile energy core. If the droid became afraid, it seemed, it would explode. And what scared a poor, defenseless droid floating through space more than a ship flying too close?

She explained all this to Chopper, who let out an empathetic whistle for his fellow droidkind.

“I know, Chop,” she said. “Is there a way we could make them… not be afraid? If the droids don’t get scared, and we don’t go too fast, they’ll just bounce right off the hull. I mean… the pirates have to have something to keep them from getting scared when they come through. Some kind of code, maybe.”

Chopper paused for a moment, which meant to Hera that he was thinking up a plan. That could hardly be good.

He plugged back into the ship’s console a moment later and started sending out a message in droidspeak.

_ Hello, _ Chopper was saying in the transmission.  _ You are being used by the pirates. Do not be afraid of the ships that come through, and you will be safe. _

“Chopper,” Hera said, in awe of her usually uncaring droid being so kind. “Do you think this will work?”

Chopper didn’t answer.

_ I should inform each of you, that if you become scared you will explode. _

Apparently, telling someone that they’ll die if they get scared makes them scared.

The first droid exploded immediately after Chopper said that. That started a chain reaction of more and more droids exploding, one after the other. Hera’s jaw dropped as a path cleared for her to fly through towards the moon. She sat down in the pilot’s seat and took the controls, flying through while explosions went off all around the range of Chopper’s transmission.

“I have to say,” she said, giving Chopper the side-eye. “I don’t entirely approve of this method. But it worked, so I’ll give you that.”

Chopper let out a sound that suspiciously sounded like laughter, and Hera sighed as she brought them closer to the moon.

* * *

Kanan was still stuck in his cell. His clothes had dried considerably, but he was still way too cold for comfort. All he was able to do was sit and watch the window, through the unchanging, lifeless icy landscape.

Well, not entirely unchanging.

A ship touched down- a large freighter. It looked too clean to be one of the pirate’s, but he couldn’t be sure of course. Except… well, none of them ever landed out there on the ice. Who was this?

He hoped for a rescuer sent by his mother, but that seemed foolish. Still, he watched the ship, which none of the pirates seemed to be commenting on. The ramp opened, and a figure walked out. It was too far to tell much else, but he could see what looked like head-tails. A Twi’lek, perhaps? The pirates were all Weequay or human, so that may have been another point towards this person not being one of them. But then who were they?

The figure came closer to the stronghold, and Kanan started to get a better look. Definitely a Twi’lek, wearing a thick jacket and wrappings around their lekku, and with a bag slung on their shoulder. Because of the cold weather, they were wrapped from head-to-toe, so it was hard to discern much else. Kanan watched as the figure walked the distance from the ship up towards the stronghold- but they didn’t go past his tower and around towards the entrance, no, they walked right up to the wall. He noticed that they were holding a scanner, and seemed to be looking down on it to follow it. At the base of the tower, they tucked the scanner into their pocket, and pulled out two wall-grips with handles, and started to climb up the tower. 

Kanan had his face practically pressed up against the window as he watched. The figure came closer and closer, and he could clearly tell now that she was a woman with beautiful jade skin, turquoise eyes, and a slender face. The woman reached the top of the tower, and their faces were inches apart, separated by glass. Kanan’s face warmed up and he backed away, while she took a cutter from her bag and cut a large circle in the viewport, still hanging on with her grips. Kanan shivered as the hole let cool air blast through on his still damp clothes.

“Are you Prince Kanan?” she asked quietly, a little out of breath. Her voice was like music to his ears.

“Yes,” Kanan said cautiously. “Who are you?”

“Hera Syndulla,” she said. “Your mother sent me. Wanna go home?”

Kanan snorted. “Yes, please.”

She smiled at him. “Good. Get your grips out of here and let’s climb down.”

She pushed her bag up so it sat on the ledge, and Kanan reached in to pull out two grips similar to the ones that she had. He followed her by carefully climbing out the window, until they were next to each on the wall. The wind whipped them, making Kanan feel numb, and Hera looked at him sympathetically.

“Sorry I don’t have anything warm for you to wear,” she said as they started to carefully lower themselves down the wall. “It’s not a long walk, I’ve got blankets in the ship.”

Hera guided him down the wall, and then helped him pull the grips off so she could stuff them back in the bag.

“Here,” she said gently. “Follow me.”

They ended up clinging to each other as they walked through the ship, braving the cold and wind. Hera apologized to him multiple times as they walked through, and as soon as they got to the ship she closed up the ramp. Kanan looked around him within the cargo hold of the ship. It wasn’t as pristine and elegant as the ships he’d ever been in (well, besides the ones that the pirates took him in), but it was still safe, warm and comfortable. That was all he could ask for. Hera guided him into the cockpit, and as soon as he sat down Hera left and came back only a moment later with a pile of blankets, which Kanan gratefully took to wrap around himself, shivering still as he did.

“I’m sorry,” Hera mumbled. “Can I get you anything? Caf? I’ve got some food to heat up, though probably not what a prince is used to.”

“I’m alright.”

Kanan’s stomach rumbled, and he wrinkled up his face with guilt. Hera just chuckled and gave him a smile that sent warmth to his previously-freezing face.

“Let me at least get us off this moon, and then I’ll get you something, alright?”

Hera sat in the pilot’s chair, occasionally sending orders towards her droid as they took off.

“We might have to do your minefield trick again if any of those droids moved,” Hera said to Chopper.

Whatever she was talking about, Kanan didn’t know- and before he could ask, the ship was rocked by a large blast. Kanan’s eyes widened.

Were they being shot at?

Hera, though, hardly seemed even startled. She just groaned.

“Great, Chop, they caught on to us. Once we break that minefield, I bet they won’t follow. Got your transmission ready?”

Chopper made an affirmative sound, and Kanan just watched Hera. He couldn’t take his eyes off of his rescuer- she was beautiful, and there was something so fascinating about her as her hands flew across the console of her ship, flipping switches and pushing buttons, steering the controls through space.

They broke the atmosphere, and Kanan saw what he thought she meant by the minefield- dots of red lit up among the debris orbiting the planet.

“Now, Chop!”

Chopper started making his warbling sounds that Kanan assumed was how the droid communicated (not that he’d spent much time with astromechs), and suddenly different red-lit objects in the field started to explode ahead of them. Kanan gasped, and tightened the hold of the blanket around them. Still, as Hera wove through the debris field, he could see thick beams of light missing them as the pirates continued to fire at them.

“Hold on tight,” Hera said as she started to break away from the field of debris, still spinning and dodging.

Kanan thought he was gonna be sick, but soon the blasterfire aimed at them slowed and stopped, and so did his rescuer’s fancy flying. He leaned back in his chair, relieved, as Hera just started to fly them out towards his home planet.

“Chopper,” she said, starting to stand up. “Take over, will you? Prince, come with me. Let’s get you a little something to eat.”

Kanan slowly stood up to follow Hera through the freighter. She directed him into a kitchen, where he sat down, still curled up in the blankets. Hera moved to a cupboard and grabbed a ready-meal box to show him.

“Just some noodles,” she said. “That alright? I’m no cook, so I keep these around since it’s impossible to mess it up. Mostly.”

Kanan chuckled and nodded. Hera’s eager kindness was more than welcome after the both literal and figurative cold he’d experienced as a captive.

“We’ll get you home to your mom in no time,” Hera said as she opened the box and started to go through the simple instructions to prepare the meal. Kanan watched her, the ship quiet except for the rustling as Hera’s hands worked with ease on the container of food. That warm feeling returned to his face as he watched her heat it up, and then gently place the bowl on the table in front of him. She slid in the seat across, and smiled at him.

“All yours,” she said quietly. “I’m glad I found you okay.”

Kanan smiled back at her, and their eyes locked. Something told him that she was also feeling that warm feeling.

“I’m glad you found me too.”

Prince Kanan Jarrus hoped that his mother would keep Hera Syndulla around in the future.


	5. Some Guy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This AU sees Hera as a princess that has some trouble focusing on her sword lessons with her instructor, Kanan.

Princess Hera had a really hard time focusing on her sword lessons.

Her “teacher” was close to her age, and he was actually a friend of hers before her father had assigned him to teach her swordsmanship.

“Kanan is skilled and disciplined in that trade” he had said. “You could learn a lot from him if you tried.”

And Hera  _ did _ try. But when they’d practice dueling, and strands of hair would start to come loose from his ponytail, and those teal eyes would lock with hers just as their training swords did, and his breathing grew a little heavier-

Well, it just made it a little more difficult to focus on learning, that was all. And especially when he took advantage of having the upper hand to disarm her, sometimes even knocking her off her feet so her training clothes would become covered in the reddish dirt of Ryloth.

“I don’t understand, Hera,” Kanan said once, standing over her while she pushed one lekku over her shoulder. “You always start out so strong, and then lose it. Maybe… I mean, are you using too much energy at the start? Tiring yourself out?”

“No,” Hera grumbled, her face hot with embarrassment as she picked up her sword and pushed herself off the ground.

“It’s good to reserve your strength in the beginning,” Kanan continued, not having heard her. “Then, if you need it for a strike when you’ve got an in on your opponent, or if you need it to defend yourself when they’ve got an in on you, you’re ready for it.”

“Uh huh,” Hera said, putting herself back in the ready position. Kanan simply waved her down.

“No, we’ve done enough today.”

He reached out to take her sword from her to put it away in the storage container with his. He smiled, and Kanan the Sword Instructor became Kanan the Friend in that moment. Hera handed her sword to him, and he put them away in the supply closet.

“Let’s go grab dinner,” Kanan said. “My treat, since I knocked you on your ass.”

“Hey,” Hera protested with a grin, becoming less flustered as they returned to their familiar, friendly banter. “Don’t be too proud, you’ve got years more training than me. Hardly something to brag about.”

Kanan laughed.

“Whatever, princess.”

The owner of the tavern that operated on the castle’s grounds was a tall, kind Lasat named Zeb. The rumors spread by the pages were that he was once a great warrior, but Hera could hardly imagine the man who kindly fixed her space waffles when she popped in for breakfast holding a weapon.

Zeb smiled at Kanan and Hera when they came in.

“The usual, I assume?”

“Yes, please,” Hera said, before she and Kanan went to sit in their usual spot in the corner of the tavern. Kanan lounged back in the seat across from her while they waited for her food.

“So what is it?” Kanan asked. “What makes you start messing up halfway through a duel every time?”

“Do we still have to talk about this?”

“Don’t  _ have _ to,” he admitted. “But come on. It’s been like this for weeks now. What’s up with you?”

“Nothings up with me,” Hera said, folding her arms. “I’m just… still learning.”

Kanan chuckled, and then leaned across the table.

“I bet I know what it is.”

Hera frowned.

“What is it?”

“You’re just getting too distracted by my rugged handsomeness, that’s all.”

Hera’s eyes widened and she leaned back, her face growing hot again. 

“What?”

Kanan laughed. “I’m kidding, princess.”

Her eyes narrowed, her cheeks still burning.

“Not funny.”

“It’s a little funny.”

* * *

Kanan spun his sword and lifted it into the ready position. He eyed his opponent- a boy much younger than him, a human with dark hair named Ezra- who also had his sword ready. Kanan had met Ezra when he found him rummaging around through the palace’s food stocks, and had since taken him under his wing.

“Ready?” Kanan asked.

“You know it.”

Kanan chuckled- the boy was a little too smug most of the time. But regardless, they went for the practice duel, swinging the swords and clashing them together. Despite his age and relative inexperience, Ezra was good- Kanan had to admit that. 

And especially because Kanan was distracted.

The sun had set and the moon was in the sky now, their duel lit by courtyard lamps. But Kanan could not help but think of the day that had preceded this- specifically, his time with Hera. His friend and protege had gotten  _ very _ flustered when he joked that she was getting distracted by him.

Could it be that he’d hit too close to home?

It’s not like he didn’t have feelings for Hera- he had since the day they’d met, long before her father had asked him to teach her swordsmanship. They’d faded somewhat in intensity as he’d accepted over the years that a simple man like him had no chance had no chance with a princess like her, no matter how close they got.

Unless… 

His sword slipped out of his hand and flipped over through the air until it stuck handle-up in the dirt a meter away, and the point of Ezra’s blade was an inch from his chest. The boy had a proud smile on his face.

“Got you.”

Kanan cursed. He was doing just what he’d been teasing Hera about.

“Yeah, you did.”

Ezra lowered his sword, and Kanan walked over to go pull his, shaking off some of the dirt on the tip. He eyed Ezra, who was spinning his sword, pleased with his victory.

Ezra was good, and now Kanan had a plan.

When Hera arrived at the grounds for practice the next day, Kanan smiled and greeted her.

“Hey,” he said. “I’ve got something a little different planned today.”

Hera frowned at him.

“Different?”

Kanan nodded.

“You know, Ezra, right? I wanted to have him duel you after we do your warm-ups. Just to give you a break from me.”

He flashed a smile at her, and Hera smiled back, though she looked slightly disappointed.

“Yeah, that sounds good,” she said.

“Perfect.”

Kanan handed her a sword, and they went through the warm-ups together. Going through the steps, the basic strikes and blocks. Once they went through them, Kanan backed away, and waved Ezra in.

“Alright,” Kanan said, a coy grin on his face- his plan aside, he had to admit that seeing two people he’s taught in a duel was exciting. “Just standard dueling, don’t overthink it. Ready?”

Hera and Ezra both lifted their blades and stood in the ready stance and nodded, neither sparing him a glance as they stared down each other.

“Now!” Kanan said.

The two swung their blades, blurring the thin lines until they locked together in a clash. He watched them duel for a while, blades swinging, feet moving swiftly. Ezra would strike and Hera would block, then Hera would strike and Ezra would block. They wove around the courtyard, locked in focused combat, both struggling to get the upper hand.

But Kanan just noticed one thing- Hera wasn’t getting distracted. By now in a fight against him, she would usually be missing strikes, or not blocking as fast as she should. But she was holding totally fine against Ezra- both of them were starting to grow a little worn out, their breathing more labored- but still holding strong. 

His lips curled into a smile. Maybe his theory held water.

Their blades locked again, and Hera managed to push and twist her sword around. She caught Ezra’s hand, and he yelped and dropped his sword. Rather than pull back and hold her sword in a threatening position for her victory, Hera’s eyes widened and she tossed her sword aside so she could take a look at Ezra’s hand.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “i just meant to get your crossguard.”

“It’s fine,” Ezra insisted. “Don’t worry about it.”

Kanan approached them to look for himself. It looked like Hera had just sliced Ezra’s hand a little, but it was still bleeding.

“Put pressure on it,” Kanan told Ezra, putting a steadying hand on his shoulder. “How bad does it hurt?”

“Not that bad.”

Kanan nodded. “That’s good. Go back to the cottage, wash up and wrap it tight, okay? You did good today, kid.”

Ezra beamed, holding his hand tight. “Thanks, Kanan.”

Ezra walked away, and Kanan bent down to pick up Ezra’s dropped sword.

“I’m sorry,” Hera said again.

Kanan shrugged. “Kid can handle it, and he didn’t seem upset. And hey, it was a good move. You did really good today, Hera. I’m proud of you.”

There was a moment of silence while Kanan went over to pick up Hera’s sword, wiping it off on the ground to get off the little bit of blood on the blade.

“Thank you,” Hera said softly.

Kanan put the swords away, and turned around to ask Hera about his theory, but she was already walking back towards the castle. Kanan thought about following her, but sighed and decided to go towards his cottage on the grounds instead, to make sure Ezra was really okay and not just fronting in front of the princess.

He could talk to Hera another time.

* * *

Hera didn’t have sword fighting practice that day, which slightly disappointed her. She really enjoyed the time spent with Kanan, even if she lost her duels with him.

Or sliced open a child’s hand. She cringed remembering that.

In her defense, the child was really good with a sword.

She was only a little surprised when she stopped into Zeb’s for lunch to find Kanan sitting in their usual spot, the booth in the back corner of the room. Zeb offered her usual order, which she gladly took, and went to sit with Kanan as she waited.

“What are you doing here?” Kanan asked with a sly smile.

“Same as you, I assume.”

He smiled, but there was an air of nerves to it.

“What do you have to tell me?”

Kanan frowned.

“What?”

“Come on,” Hera teased. “What are you thinking about?”

She knew what she hoped it was.

“Well,” Kanan started slowly. “Now that you mention it, I noticed you didn’t get distracted against Ezra last night. Must just be against me.”

Hera blushed.

“Oh…”

“So,” he continued. “I guess I should ask you- do you have something to tell me?”

Hera pressed her lips together.

She did.

“Maybe,” she said quietly.

A long, quiet moment hung between them. Zeb dropped her plate of food in front of her before Kanan broke the silence.

“Listen,” he said. “I get it. You’re a princess, I’m- I’m some guy. But, I mean…”

Kanan trailed off, and then sighed.

“Listen, Hera, I’ve… I have  _ feelings _ for you. Always have. And it’s okay if you don’t- if you can’t. But you’re my friend, and-”

He cut himself off when Hera reached over and took his hand. Hera’s face was growing warmer by the second since he’d started his confession, and she had a feeling that his was too. She swallowed hard.

“I have feelings for you too, Kanan.”

Her voice was low, almost a whisper that she could barely even hear herself. She’d have worried that Kanan didn’t hear her, if he hadn’t smiled and squeezed her hand.

“You mean that?”

“Yeah.”

“Is a princess allowed-?”

He let the question finish itself in the air. Hera chuckled.

“I can do whatever I want.”

Kanan looked down sheepishly.

“And Kanan,” she said firmly. “You’re not just ‘some guy.’ Don’t forget that."

She looked into those teal eyes that always distracted her, and found nothing but adoration in them.


	6. Starlight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter sees Kanan and Hera as Jedi in the High Republic era.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You might need a little High Republic background knowledge to get all the references in this one, but I think you should still be able to understand even without it.

Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus stood on the deck of the Starlight Beacon, looking out into space. The stars moved ever so slightly as the beacon slowly turned. An epitome of the peace and prosperity the Republic was experiencing, one of Chancellor Lina Soh’s great works, and just in general a beautiful place to be. The beacon included luxurious accommodations and beautiful gardens that included flora from all different worlds, another symbol of the union in the galaxy. It was peaceful, and Kanan knew he’d enjoy his time stationed on the Beacon.

A green Twi’lek woman, wearing similar light-colored robes to his, walked to his side, also gazing out towards the side. Kanan’s lip twitched up into a small smirk- there was another reason he’d enjoy being here too.

Sure, such things were  _ technically _ forbidden by the Jedi Order. But as even the strictest Jedi (and popular romance novel-writers) knew, they happened anyway. And kept discreet enough, most Jedi tended not to pry too much unless you were being considered for a place on the Council or some other form of promotion.

“Master Syndulla,” he said politely, with a small incline of his head, finally turning to look at her. She smiled too.

“Master Jarrus. Nice to see you.”

“It’s lucky that we happened to be stationed here at the same time, don’t you think?”

Hera nodded slowly, serenely. “Yes. Very lucky.”

Kanan snorted quietly, and returned his gaze to the stars. 

He knew Hera very,  _ very _ well- they’d trained together as younglings, worked together to solve a pirate problem on a midrim world after graduating from being padawans and been  _ close friends _ ever since.. Yet she still perplexed him.

From the outside, she seemed to be a perfect Jedi, following the rules she felt were fair and providing a just argument to those she didn’t. But she had her quiet rebellions. Going to the library when she was supposed to be on the training grounds. Going to the training grounds when she was supposed to be in the library. Going on adventures through Coruscant she told no one about until afterwards. Taking Jedi ships on unauthorized joy rides, then proceeding to return them in even better condition than they were. She’d do that with rental ships in the city too. With any ships, really.

And of course, her biggest rebellion- sneaking around with a fellow Knight.

It was for that reason that Kanan wasn’t sure if he was surprised or not when he found out that she’d put in a special request for a “personal reflection” assignment on the Beacon only a few days after he’d told her that he’d been assigned there. He saw the request on one of the datapads when he was reviewing the information he needed for his own assignment, and had a quiet chuckle with himself.

She still surprised him, that was for sure.

“I have a meeting with some of the diplomats this evening,” Kanan said, turning to look at her. “Would you join me for a walk in the gardens tonight?”

Hera turned to look back at him, and smiled. He saw her hand twitch, though she wouldn’t dare to take his hand in hers- not here. 

“I’d like that. For meditative purposes.”

Kanan grinned, not even bothering to hide it.

“Of course.”

* * *

Hera sat quietly on the bench in the garden, waiting for Kanan’s meeting to be over. She’d already meditated in her quarters earlier that day and didn’t feel an itch to now, so she just admired all of the plants in the garden. They were exotic blues and purples, vines climbing up the space station’s walls and oddly-shaped flowers blooming among bushes with equally oddly-shaped leaves. The lights were dimmed as the internal chronometer of the space station wanted to simulate night, and a quiet soundtrack played of what Hera assumed was the native nocturnal fauna of whatever planet these plants were from.

Soft footsteps cut through the soundtrack, and Hera looked over to see Kanan walking through, Jedi robes held together with the pin of the Order’s symbol. Hera stood up from the bench and went to approach him, looking around quickly to make sure there were no prying eyes to catch them. When they met, she took his hands in his and leaned in to kiss him, before she broke away from it just to rest her forehead on his.

“Bold of you,” Kanan mumbled.

“It’s late,” she said. “No one’s here.”

Kanan stepped back, releasing her hands and smiling at her.

“Have you walked through yet?”

“No,” Hera shook her head. “I was waiting to go with you.”

“Well then,” Kanan said, extending an arm. “Shall we?”

Hera laughed and took his arm, and they walked through the curved gardens. Instead of viewports out towards space, there were screens showing what the worlds that the plants belonged to looked like. Each planet’s area transitioned into another, and Hera was quickly finding that the gardens were much larger than she’d anticipated. She leaned her head on Kanan’s shoulder as they walked, content to just be with him.

“What do you think is in store for the future?” Kanan asked as they walked.

“For the Republic?” Hera said, lifting her head to look at his face. “Or for us?”

Kanan was a little too quiet for a few moments, but the recording of a bird’s cry filled the silence.

“For the Republic.”

Hera shrugged. “I’m not sure,” she admitted. “Hopefully peace, for a long time. Once the Emergences stop, I think things will get back to normal. And normal was just getting better.”

“You’re not worried about the Nihil?”

“They’re pirates, love,” Hera said, looking at him with a coy smile. “We know how to handle pirates.”

Kanan laughed.

“You might be right.”

In reality, Hera was scared of what the future might hold. Things were always in motion, as Master Yoda always said. She didn’t know what was going to happen with the Emergences, with the Nihil, or anything. But she preferred to hold on to hope. Hope that things would continue on the positive track that they’d once been on.

And with Kanan beside her, she couldn’t help but think that everything was going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be totally honest, this AU was inspired by the "Jedi romance novels" mentioned in the High Republic books.


End file.
